Time Change is Really Messing with My Sleeping Habits
Posted by Bob Barcus on March 15th, 2013
This time change is really messing with me and it makes no sense! Before the time change, my sleeping habits were greatly improved - getting a full eight hours of sleep every night was a good habit to have. Now that "summer time" is here, I can't seem to get to bed at a reasonable time nor am I waking up early, like I prefer. Daylight saving time is a crock, if you ask me.
I think that DST is more political than anything else. Indiana has been a battleground for the time zone debate for decades. Our poor state has been pulled and twisted so many times, that it has garnered a rather lengthy entry on Wikipedia just to help people understand the history. Throughout this history, community leaders and government agencies have demanded change and provided justification for their endless pursuit of the perfect time for the Hoosier state.
I just have one thing to say - leave me alone! Maybe I should just start observing my own personal time and forget about the USDOT and state legislature trying to determine how my clocks should be set. Granted, knowing the time is convenient for meetings and watching television, but I'm tired of debate.
When former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels decided to move Indiana to DST a few years back, it spurred a massive controversy, one to which my mind and body can't seem to adjust. The issue became a puck in the great political ice rink, forcing us to take our minds off the real issues as we were jostled back and forth by our government. It seems like every time I turn around, there is some unknown representative in the legislature presenting a bill that will move Indiana from one time zone to another or whether or not to observe daylight saving time.
Historically and geographically, Indiana should be in the Central Time Zone. There's actually now a Central Time Coalition made up of businessmen, educators, politicians and others trying to put Indiana squarely in the Central Time Zone. I'm OK with that, but they also want us to observe daylight saving time (bummer - they almost convinced me).
The coalition's justification for moving to Central Time is actually a strong one. As a former school bus driver, I can attest to the need for children safety at bus stops. According to the Indiana School Bus Drivers Association, there has been a marked increase in the number of incidents involving school children at bus stops since the state adopted DST. I firmly believe that kids should not be getting on the school bus in the dark and regardless of the number of mirrors or lights available to a bus driver, the dark creates a significant safety issue.
If you ask me, there was nothing wrong with the old way of doing things (imagine me saying that in my old codger voice). I would love it if we moved back to a single time in Indiana where we don't observe DST (whether it is Eastern or Central Time - just pick one and stick with it). I'm tired of being a puck.